Tangled - Movie Review:

Yet another Disney movie proves to be an entertainer of all ages. The fairy tale of a blossoming damsel (Rapunzel) being abducted for the magical powers of her hair and how she finds her parents is the storyline. The royal family has lost their heir to a selfish woman. In memory of her birthday the king lets out floating candles every year on the princess’ birthday.

This has been Rapunzel’s attraction and dream since childhood. A fine day she meets a roguish bandit Flynn Rider, who comes with a royal asset. She makes a deal with him to take her to see the lights and in turn she will give his asset. Then starts the real fun; as they travel,rapunzel explores the outside world after 18years. The music director has done excellent with the songs and background score.

A must watch !!

Withdrawn

A cozy night, after a busy long day;

Engrossed in work with his laptop

Was her love unnoticing her presence.

Admiring him silently she was into the room,

Slithering  beside him in need of warmth;

She overspoke her mind in excitement.

Thoughts conveyed wrongly,

Turns her down, lost in his world.

Sensitive damsel unknowing her way to explain,

Retreats in silence

Awaiting his call.

P.S: My first attempt of poem. Am not sureif it is really one. Suggestions & corrections welcome. J

Hostel Rasam:

 This is one of the easiest and just needs two minutes to cook. It might not be right to compare it with rasam in hostel which would be barely a chilli water. But this is definitely an awesome rasam to be done on sluggish days. Amazing taste with a very little input.

Ingredients:

Tomato-1

Garlic – 3 to 4 cloves

Curry leaves – a handful

Cumin seeds – 1 tsp

Pepper - ½ tsp

Salt – for taste

Red chilli – 2 to 3

Tamarind puree – 1 cup

Procedure:

• Grind tomato, garlic, curry leaves, cumin seeds, pepper, red chilli to a puree.
• In a vessel add tamarind water and keep it in medium fire.
• After two minutes, add the puree and wait till it rises to overflow.
• Switch it off, before it boils. Garnish with corriander leaves if needed.

Fall’10

This has been the much expectant season in this foreign land-“The Fall”. This is my first view of the chameleonic trait of trees. This trait does not endanger anyone but itself. Captured in stages by cameras, admired as a breadth taking sight, can be paralleled to the final stages of human beings.

We would have heard a debatable topic; “Which is the beautiful part of life?”. Every stage is beautiful in its own way. But the final stage where a man rests after working all through his life, enjoys the company of his family, playing with the grandkids is a unique joy. Similar to that here is when a tree transforms its appearance; dries and withers away. It does not fight to survive it lush greenery. Technically, this is a dormant stage to flourish when the sun will rise in the spring. But the trees bring in smile of the beholders even in its last stage before it withers, just as the elders just wait to see only happiness of their successors.


I am really excited to see the beautiful trees changing its colors to yellow, red, orange and maroon. Here are some of my favorite shots.

Endhiran- The Humanoid Super Star

Director: S. Shankar
Written by: S. Shankar, Sujatha, Balakumaran
Music: A.R.Rehman
Cast:
Rajini Kanth - Dr. Vaseegaran
Aishwarya Rai Bacchan – Sana
Danny Denzongpa – Prof. Bohra

Overall Rating


Review: The award winning scientist Dr. Vaseegaran (Rajini Kanth)  is on his mission in developing a Human-Android robot. The only movie which lacks astounding entry of the superstar!! Showing him as a geek (who forgets himself when comes to his innovation) would have disappointed his fervent fans. Another noteworthy avatar of the super star is the absence of his style and punch dialogues. He soon transforms into his latest style of Dr. Vasi to meet his girlfriend Sana (Aishwarya). The robot moves with the public and Vasi studies its reaction to the surroundings.
The robot is fondly called as Chitti, becomes Sana’s favorite toy and her companion to pass in her exam. The Stunt in the train leaves the viewers in awe and it is too fast to comprehend. It moves with Vasi’s lady love in helping and entertaining people at the home.

The villain, Prof Bohra gets jealous on is student Vasi’s successful completion. He being the top executives of AIRD rejects the robot, stamping it as just a machine and ignorant of right and wrong. Then Vasi trains the robot by teaching him all the emotions and relationship complexities.
Rajini’s has been and still is a super star as his movies will reach and satisfy every individual viewer, no matter the age. The robot performs a hard to succeed delivery where the middle aged women would have felt the situation. Vasi’s lady love Sana thanks and Kisses Chitti in excitement for his achievement and this infuses love into a machine.

Chitti does everything to satisfy his new love , even to the extent of finding a mosquito which bit her and making it to apologize. Chitti performs an excellent duet with Sana and reaches to kiss her. Chitti fails in his test to impress the army generals by singing poems on his love. Vasi destroys him in frustration and throws him away.

Prof. Bohra takes advantage of this crack in their relationship and revives Chitti to life with an additional destructive ability. Chitti creates many more of himself and gets on to the mission to marry Sana. He kills the villian and turns into one, destroying and looting very supermarket to fill his palace.

Police blames Vasi for the destruction and fetches his help. The final forty five minutes of amazing graphics and camera leaves us jaw dropping. The Music is fantastic from the Maestero again and stands on its own apart from its support to the movie. Choreography speaks for itself synching with the lyrics. Super Star looks amazing and has danced well, still holds the nation together with his enigma. His acting is amazing in the second half as the destructive robot. Aishwarya looks stunning as always and no wonder even the robot fell in love.

The Director’s visualization has paralleled with the blockbusters of Hollywood like that of matrix, Godzilla, Anaconda. This is a daring step with a huge investment of 160 crores makes it the highest budgeted movie in Asia.
It cannot be called the perfect movie; every movie has its own flaws. And the is a giant step form the Tamil film industry with a great effort from the team and a must watch for Rajini’s fans all over the world.

Mixed Fruit Halwa:

Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 Mango(medium size)
1 Banana(medium size)
1 Apple(medium size)
4 tsp Ghee
3 tsps Milk
6 tsps of sugar
½ tsps cardamom powder
Food colour (optional)

Method:
- Wash the fruits and grind them coarsely in the mixer.
- Micro high it in a vessel for 2 minutes with intermediate stirring.
- In another vessel boil milk and sugar for 4 minutes with intermediate stirring.
- Add the fruit pulp with the sugar mixture and micro it for 6 minutes with intermediate stirring. Add colour if needed.
- Add ghee to it and micro for 3 minutes with intermediate stirring.
- Fry Kaju and badam in ½ tsp ghee in a separate vessel for 1 minute.
- Garnish it on the halwa and serve.

Sending it to,                           
                                                   
                                          Nivedita's Microwave Easy Cooking- Friuts
                                                                         and 
                                                           Srivalli MEC Event

Apple Sheera:

                       Apple is an amazing nutritive fruit to us from nature. It is a not so favourite one for kids, even some grownups. It has the following Health benefits- prevents dementia, decreases cholesterol level, decreases cancer risk, prevents overweight. Here is a sweet to include apple which will be delicious, nutritious and easy to prepare.


Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
1 cup sooji
1 cup Sugar
½ cup Ghee
1 ½ cup Water+milk
1 Apple
1tbsp Raisins & Kaju

Method:
- In a vessel, put sugar, water/milk mixture, micro high 6 minutes, stirring in between.
- In another vessel, put 2 tsp ghee, micro high for 1 minute, add sooji, micro high for 2 minutes, stirring in between.
- Add the above sooji to milk mixture, add apple(ground), mix well, micro high for 2 minutes, stirring in between.
- Add the remaining ghee, micro high for 1 mintue, remove and keep closed for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with raisins and kaju.

Sending it to,                           
                                                   
                                              Nivedita's Microwave Easy Cooking- Friuts
                                                                         and 
                                                             Srivalli MEC Event

Shots at Sight

It is always pleasurable to see love among living being. Here is a click from my patio on a fine morning. These birds were moving around the roof, chasing one another for about ten minutes. Here it is for your view.

Camera: Cannon SD 1400IS- 14.1Mega Pixel, 4X optical zoom.

Beetroot Vadai :

                         This recipe is very special one from my M-I-L. This has been my hubby’s favorite one. Beetroot vadai is the best way to include beetroot in children’s diet who won’t eat it.

Ingredients: For 4
Beetroot-150gms
Toor dhal -100gms
Bengal gram- 100gms
Salt – to taste
Red chilli -3
Onion- 100 gms
Curry leaves - handfull
Oil- to fry

Procedure:
- Soak the Bengal gram and toor dhal for about 2 hours.
- Peel the skin and grate the beetroot.
- Grind the soaked dhals, grated beetroot, salt, red chilli and curry leaves to a light coarse texture.
- Add chopped onions to the mixture.
- Heat the oil in frying pan.
- Make small balls,  flatten it and fry it for a crispy snack.






Sending it to,
                       
                          
                             Priya's Healing Foods - Beetroot Event Guest Hosting
                                      (linking it to  Siri's Healing foods home page)

                                                                               
                                                                              
                                                                              AND 
                                

Akila's 

Dish Name Starts with: B

Tomato Dosa with Corriander Chutney:

Thanks to my friends who gave me the idea of tomato dosa. It is a quick recipe which will be ready to eat within 2 hours from the initial preparation or even shorter.
Dosa can be done by two methods,
1. With soaked rice
2. By using fermented dough

Ingredients: For two
Rice- 1 cup(250 ml)
Tomato- 2 or 3
Onion- half
Coriander leaves- 1 bunch
Green Chilli-1
Ginger- small clove
Tamarind- small pinch
Cumin seeds- 1 tsp
Salt- for taste
Oil

Procedure:
Dosa: Soak the rice for about an hour and grind it with salt to make dough. Or if you have a fermented dough, it can be used instead of rice.
Boil tomatoes and peel its skin.
Grind tomatoes to make a puree and mix it with rice dough.
Heat the pan and make dosa.

Chutney:

Wash the leaves and grind it with onion, Chilli, ginger, salt and cumin seeds.

This combination is one of the best I have ever tasted. Do try this and pass on your comments.
Thanks for reading,… :)

Mutter Paneer:

Ingredients: For 2 Persons

• Paneer- 8 ounce
• Fresh Peas- ½ lb.
• Large onion-1
• Large Tomato-3/4
• Bay Leaf- 1
• Cloves- 2 nos.
• Ginger-garlic paste- ½ tsp.
• Coriander powder- ½ tsp.
• Garam Masala- 1 tsp.
• Chilli Powder- ½ tsp. (depending upon spice needed)
• Turmeric powder- A pinch
• Oil – 2 tsp.
• Butter- A small cube
• Salt- To taste
• Milk- A Small cup
• Cashew- Handful
• Coriander leaves- To garnish

Procedure:
- Fry paneer cubes in butter till it becomes light brown and keep it aside in a napkin to remove excess butter.
- Soak cashew in water for half an hour and grind it into paste.
- Grind onion into paste and keep it aside.
- Grind tomato into paste and keep it aside.
- Add oil in tava, fry bay leaves & cloves,
- Add onion paste and fry till it turns a little brown.
- Add tomato paste and fry till the raw smell goes.
- Add ginger-garlic paste, coriander powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and fry for about three min.
- Add milk and let it boil for two min.
- Now add peas and let it boil for two min.
- Add paneer and cashew paste, stir well for a couple of minutes.
- Remove from fire, garnish with coriander leaves and serve.

Harmonious Nature:

We have read about the balance struck by nature with the food chain in every ecosystem. The creator has baked this world into a perfect cake with the proper blend of taste and nutrition. The world is a combination of opposites like the day& night, summer & winter, good & bad, beauty & beast. Beauty attracts attention and is in the eyes of the beholder. Every creature in this world is endowed with beauty in its appearance or its specialty. Here is my post to compare one of the beautiful creations and one of the weirdest.

Tips for the Bride-to-be:

Marriage is the first most expectant occasion in women’s life. The period before marriage and after engagement is the most enthralling one. Burning the midnight oil would be different this time, because it’s not for the sake of exams rather for the “special” person. “Sangeedha swarangal….” (Tamil song depicting lovers over the phone all through the night) attuned with the long hours phone call, loud-mouthed ones turning into the secretive ones, shy giggles being the sole conversations, knowing each other by silly questionnaires. The happiness infused by the special person sticks a smile on her face 24*7. So it is our duty to make the smile glow up on the D day.

-Keep working on your muscles by stretching it to improve flexibility, and to be fit. Regular workouts improve blood circulation to keep you fresh.
-Anxiety can lead to pimples; apply sandal powder on the pimples before to go to sleep.
-Shopping never ends till the final day; it is essential to protect from the sun. Avoid getting out between 11.00 am and 3.00pm when the sun is at its hottest. Apply sunscreen when you go out.
-Apply cream of the milk along with a few tea spoons of lemon juice on the exposed areas like face, neck, arms. This will help to remove the tan.
-Avoid soaps and go for natural ones like Kadala mavu (gram flour) for the body and Payatha mavu (green gram flour) for you face while taking bath.
-Do pedicure for yourself every night by soaking your feet in warm water mixed with crystal salt for ten minutes, scrub it with a scrapper, dry it and apply moisturizing lotion. Use moisturizer for your body every day.
-Apply hot oil on the hair roots and give a massage before taking bath, may be by your mom, sister or yourself.
- To have a cooling effect mix curd with Vendhayam (fenugreek seeds) soaked water and apply it before washing hair for about half an hour. (people who are prone to catch cold, people with sinusitis- don’t try this)
- Drink lots of water (about 4-5 lts a day) and increase your intake of fruits.

Keep working on these tips for about two months before marriage and the results will be evident on the special day. Those entire brides-to-be stay cheerful and beautiful than ever on the very special day.

P.S: This is my dedication to my sweet sister who is getting married on Aug. 20th. Wish you a long happy married life dear, I miss you.

5 ways to Amplify Happiness:

Happiness is in us. We have been created with all emotions impregnated in our nerves and tissues.
“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions
-Dalai Lama”Life is a bumpy forest ride for each one of us, confronting the hidden enemies, overcoming the tough trail to reach the sanctuary to feel the peace and protection. Test of time might kick us into a dark burrow. Climbing up to reach the surface is for what we have been vested with power. Happiness is not lost when we are confronting a difficulty. It is when; we are going to experience it in multiplied quantity on overcoming the situation. Just as we train our muscles we can train our brain to be happy. Here are few tips to maximize happiness

5. Go with the flow:
This is the concept of being wholly involved in an activity. Let it be anything which takes you through its stride like a tiring match of tennis, or gardening. Engage in something that correlates to your personal strength and gives room to improve upon it.

4. Appreciate little things:
While you are on your way back home, take time to enjoy the beautiful sunset rather than listening to a radio along with the horns.
Make others feel better by saying “Thank You” for the little help they offer.
Jot down things you are grateful to relax.

3. Stay Positive:
You can’t just wait to be happy. Look out how to be happy and find ways to improve your life. And when it takes longer for the bend on the road or the silver lining, you need to look harder for it and keep trying. Persistence and positivity will shower happiness.

2. Connect with your localities:

Happiness in old age is related to the bond shared with friends and relatives. We always need someone to cling on, pat us when we are down. So build a community. Happiness can also be reaped by helping others. It is the joy of giving.

1. Get fit:

A healthy mind needs a healthy body. Exercise is said to reduce the stress hormone and will increase happiness. A regular workout of at least half an hour a day will improve positive feelings.

Truly Adorable and Hilarous.

This is the tagline of the latest animated movie “DESPICABLE ME”. It has got the third biggest opening among the animated movies of 2010 earning $164 million domestically.

It starts Steve Carell as Gru with his army of “Minions”, a capsule shaped humanoid, competing for the super villain. The struggle begins when he tries to get loan from the Bank of Evil to steal the moon. But the loan is denied, saying it can be granted only with the essential shrink ray. Meanwhile Vector, the son of the bank president brags about his victory of stealing the Pyramid.

Gru steals the shrink ray from East Asia and which is stolen again from him by Vector. He adopts three girls from an orphanage who sells cookies to Vector to get back the shrink ray. Gru’s assistant Dr. Nefario invents a cookie robot which can help Gru find the shrink ray while the girls try to sell the original cookies. Gru abducts the shrink ray from vector with the help of minions. They take him to an amusement park and is forced to ride the roller coaster. Here is where he bonds with the girls and there goes the story. The situation where he has to choose between his girls or his Super villain fame, he opts to be the sweet and caring father and also a caring leader for the minions.

The animation work is excellent that we can never see them as toon; the voices have matched perfectly with various expressions delivered at the right moment. The minions are the cute little ones, which have created their own niche with their hilarious activities. This is truly a family entertainer to forget all your worries and laugh with the minions.

Here is the minions’ territory, go play with them :)
http://www.miniondominion.com/

From the Bird's Eye

Every one of us would want to fly high a bird, some say to feel lighter, or to feel the air brushing our hair through, or to view this enormous world in the bird’s eye view. We can have one of those, from one of the tallest buildings in this world, i.e., the John Hancock’s Observatory, Chicago. It was the tallest building in the world when it was built in the year 1968. Now it stands as the fourth largest in Chicago and Fifth largest inthe world. Standing up tall at a height of 1,127 foot with a tubular architecture gives it a symmetrical appearance and strength at times of strong winds. It has 100 floors in it and the observatory is at the 94th floor.

Every one of us would want to fly high a bird, some say to feel lighter, or to feel the air brushing our hair through, or to view this enormous world in the bird’s eye view. We can have one of those, from one of the tallest buildings in this world, i.e., the John Hancock’s Observatory, Chicago. It was the tallest building in the world when it was built in the year 1968. Now it stands as the fourth largest in Chicago and Fifth largest in the world. Standing up tall at a height of 1,127 foot with a tubular architecture gives it a symmetrical appearance and strength at times of strong winds. It has 100 floors in it and the observatory is at the 94th floor.

This turned over the entire scene; it was the dark blanket covering up the city. Soon it resembled a model that was in the museum. The monster trucks shrunk into the tiny ones, the limos appearing like that of a dachshund. The view will make you sit and observe the dwarfs down. It would be you with your digital tour guide, silence all through when you peep beyond. The only place you could experience the highness in air is the skywalk, a part of observatory which has the fresh air (The rest is completely glass) through an iron mesh. It is said your face would freeze within seconds during winter in this skywalk due to the chillness of air at such a high altitude.

Here is the day and night view along with sea shore. Everyone should visit this in life.

Hobby Recreated

New Currency Symbol

Yipee… We have got our identity…
This is the day India has got its own monetary imprint. This has proved its major role and importance at the international market. The Indian government has given its approval for the currency symbol today, 15th July 2010.

The finance ministry has held contest nationwide for the currency symbol and the winning entry conceptualized by Mr. D. Udaya Kumar, a post graduate student of IIT has been approved. It has been said that it would take six months to be in use in India and would take two years for it to be recognized by other countries government. The symbol has the letter “Ra” from devangiri script which also looks like the roman letter “R” without the vertical stroke.
Till date, the rupee was in use by neighboring countries too like Pakistan, Maldives, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Indian currency was identified as INR. With this India is joining the exclusive group of countries with a unique symbol for its currency. India has been a lucrative market for the exporters worldwide with diversified products and services. As per the U.S Commercial Service, India is
- is one of only three countries that make its own supercomputers
- is the fourth largest economy in the world (measured in terms of purchasing power parity)
- is one of six countries that launch its own satellites
- 100 of the Fortune 500 have R & D facilities in India
- has the second largest group of software developers after the U.S.
- lists 6,600 companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange; only the NYSE has more
- is the world's largest producer of milk, and second largest producer of food, including fruits and vegetables
- sends more students to the U.S. colleges than any other country in the world.
- Indian pharmaceutical industry is the world's second largest after China.
India has gained a stable value, recovering from the financial crisis and its values 46.5 to dollar. Let’s hope this would give a remarkable lift for the Indian economy.

The Man behind Me:

The love for our mother never goes dry even after so many expressions. Having written about the greatness of mom, exuding all my love for her, I still have enormous to say. But they say that girls are daddy’s pet. Yes I am and how can I not share the highness of my dad? When people used to question me if I was mummies or daddy’s pet, it would respond with a reflex that am a Daddy’s girl. Though the closeness with my mom evolved with the passage of time, dad was my first companion.

It is the basic physics of opposite attracts that makes the world go around. Every soon to be dad would expect to have a little girl baby and the soon to be mom, the vice versa. He dears to see her little angel smile, besides the most powerful watts bulb, her smile is the everlasting flash that lights up his life. He teaches her to walk, and when the tiny nimble fingers wrap his index finger, he is run-off with pride and confidence. The sense of wholeness fulfills his mind when he thinks of his life with the amazing magic show of the fairy.

He might be the only bread maker in the family. Even though he is ignorant of the kid’s stuffs, he takes an extra mile to know about it and find the best for his daughter. Father plays an essential part in the child’s social stability, problem solving skills, and those activities which involves the left brain. The right brain is much active in female and so it is the father who activates the left brain of his fairy. In fact as proved by a study, the way in which a fatherless girl views the opposite sex in the outside world, moving with them is tainted. He is the source of the girl’s confidence to face this elusive world.

A belief prevails that, women are emotional than men, but the fact is men are much more attached and passionate; while women are pragmatic towards life. They are not very expressive as females. A Father knows not to measure the love he showers for his kid. Even without the outright demand, her father grants every wish of hers with just a cute little wink from her and he will be the happiest when his kid beams with joy.
He would be offended on seeing his kid is hurt by a thorn or a bump and to evacuate it, he will pounce on his spouse for being careless. He might be miles away from his family for official reasons, but he will make it mandatory to visit them during weekends, no matter the distance is. He would celebrate and appreciate you like no other in the world, here I have an experience, and I was in secondary level at school, had won an intra-school shuttle badminton tournament. Though my dad was away for work, he brought a whole bundle of chocolates to treat me. He never has a boundary for his love. He would buy a huge chocolate cake on asking for a piece of cake as a snack. He would never count his penny to bring in the joy.

He having experienced diverse people all through his life, his age and experience adds strength to our living today. You go to him sighting some problem, he will enunciate the facts in black and white, which might be piercing, but following his words will certainly lead us to a better living. His experience is our backbone today.

There were days when we would go around on leisurely walks holding your hands with no fear or anxiety of life. I had a person who would go to any extent to save me or make my day. Have learnt a million things from you dad. I would be the little companion to ride around the peaceful city on a beautiful weekend evening. You were the one who encouraged me when I was down with the fear to face a challenge, the one who would carry me to the hospital when I was bed-ridden at the odd hours, the one who showed the stronger side in me to face life with confidence.

There might have been times; when he would have been wounded by our words or actions. But every one of us will realize his importance at a certain juncture of life. This is an opportunity for me, and I am really blessed to have got you in my life and proud of you Pa, you have made my life today and really sorry if I had hurt you or I had put you through misery. Love you DAD.

In Search of the Dearest one.......

It was a beautiful day at home, enjoying the company of my parents, relatives nearby visiting our place along with stretched hour chats. It was bed time and each of us hit the bed at our convenient schedule. I was late that day too, because of late hour’s phone call from to be dear ones, browsing the net to pull in sleep in my eyes. My eyes started to shut down just as the monitor would flicker with the lack of sufficient power supply. I brushed my teeth and grasped my pillow tight to sleep. The minty flavor of the tooth-paste gave a pinch of freshness in me.

I started to stare at the ceiling above me, having lost myself in thoughts. I was halfway through my sleep and I woke up suddenly looking out for my mother who would usually sleep beside me. I hear a voice saying that she is not here. I am struck in a shock like that of a thunder which hits a tree to ashes. Was running all around our home looking out for her.

I wish I had wings as that of a unicorn so that I can reach various places in a jiffy. It was fear and anxiety filled in my eyes, fear of losing her, deep thoughts of her love and affection flash my mind as I run. Tears were ready to drip down my cheeks as I was unable to imbibe the news heard. Suddenly I am out of my sleep and I wake up looking for her beside me. Then I recognized the reality of time and I was miles and miles away from her with my husband beside me. It is not at our home with my parents, it is my new life. Though my mind woke up from the illusion, tears drenched my cheeks after this horrible dream on the early hours of the day. Am not superstitious one, but I do believe that dreams have a reflection of our minds and predict the future. No sooner did I wake up, I browsed the internet about the dream of death. To my sense of relief, it stated as a good sign in most cases. I could not come out of this dream for a long time. I wish this turns out to be a good one for you mom, blessing you with a long and healthy life. Mom, I might be thousands of miles away from you, but my mind always keeps thinking about you. I mean that I want to be near you, spend time with you and be your source of happiness. I Love you so much and I Miss you MOM.

Diminishing Identity

NOTE: "This entry is not to hurt anyone. It is just my perspective"

There had been days when girls were yearning to have mangal sutra around their neck, kum kum or sindhoor on top of their forehead, I mean waiting to get married. They had pictured these as a symbol of beauty besides it being the symbol of identity of married women. By the tradition of South India, Mangal sutra and the toe ring had been the sacred ornament. In these days of the stylish era, it is being worn as just an ornament. How many of us know its importance and preserve it? So why is the toe ring worn?? Are we wearing for the purpose of it?

In the words of my Granny,” In olden days, girls wore mangal sutra and the guys wore the toe ring. While commuting on roads, the women wore mangal sutra visible to others and to walk on the street heading downwards, and men would wear the toe ring, so when a married women catches a sight of a man with ring on his toe, she would move away and the guy on looking at the mangal sutra would give her way to go.”

In those days, a toe ring were made only of silver and as gold was considered as the form of goddess Lakshmi, so was looked upon as a disrespect to wear it below the waist. But which is not deliberated in the world of fashion today.

We always like to have pleasant sounds at our house. For example the wind chimes which produce a melodious rhythm, fills s with joy. Similarly, there is a common belief that clashing sound of toe rings chases away evil spirit and brings wellness for the family members.

There is also another belief on medical insight on wearing toe ring is that it regularizes the menstrual cycle of married women. A specific nerve from the second toe connects uterus and heart. So while walking, friction caused by this nerve gives energy to reproductive organs.

This toe ring is gifted to the bride by her uncle after the sacrificial rites, who has a significant importance in the her life. After this, the groom holds the bride’s big toe and takes seven steps to affirm their relationship as friends for life.

So with all these significance in it, do all of us practice and cherish its values? Here is a little comparison with a foreign culture, the English ones. If a guy or girl finds their soul mate, they get to know them in person, understand them, go around dating and stuff till they magically decide to hold their hands. But when asking for her hand, the guy approaches her with a ring and asks, “Will you marry me?” on a perfect evening in all due respects. And the girl on deciding to marry the guy wears the ring as a symbol of love and an identity of their relationship all through their lifetime together. They do have their identity where ever they go irrespective of their lifestyle.

These days, toe rings have become an ornament rather than an identity. Let we not be too orthodox and walk with our heads facing down on roads but it is our duty to preserve our tradition and culture. So wearing it in silver or gold or enameled is not the concern, wearing it is of great importance and will give us the pride of carrying our tradition in whichever lifestyle we be.

Kaju Almond Katli

I made this for my Hubby's Birthday. It came out well that people commented it tastes like the one from the sweet stall. Thanks to all.. Here is the recepie.

Ingredients:

Equal amount of cashew and almond (here 1:1)
2 cups of sugar
2 cups of water
Sliced almond - to garnish


Procedure:
- Soak almond in water and peel the skin
- Grind them into fine powder (as it s wet, it will leave some pieces unground)
- grind the cashew finely (as dry)
- Mix these and roast them in medium fire till it gives out aroma and colour changes to light golden brown
- Romove it from the heat and keep it aside
- Boil water and add sugar to it for about 15 min setting haet as high (till slight kambi padham, it s one thread syrup)
- In another vessel, preferably the coated one, add the mixture and add the syrup while it s hot and stir it in medium fire.
- Continue stirring till it comes as whole (surrundu vara varaikkum)
- Put it on a greased plate and let it cool
- Once it is half way cool, u can make it into desired shape..
- Slice almonds and decorate it on each piece.


Do try this and post your experience. Thanks for reading :)

I Just Turned Back:

The years have just turned two fold since I came out of college. As I converse with my friends, they say about their career, situations at home and, we gossip just as we did when we were in college. It is truly hard to believe that time is the one and only factor that never stops for anything, may it be our laziness, relationships, sentiments, whatever…

We would have had a completely different standpoint of life during that stage, dreaming most of the time though we might have piles of assignments to be completed, and chit chatting with friends for long hours over absolute nothing. It’s hard to believe our viewpoint of life has completely changed for each one of us from that. People say we see the real world after college. That’s very true indeed. All our dreams don’t come true, for some of us only a few of it, and for some none of it. A few ones’ carrier might change, a few don’t get anything called a career, and a few just accept the one coming along their way. Just as we evoke the sensational life of college days with our friends, we get drenched in the sensitivity of misplaced at present. Soon either of the conversationalists drags us into reality and wonder saying, “Just three years before, we were worrying about our internals, resolving our tiff with the roomie, but now we have become more responsible with no time to look back”.

This is absolute truth, now when I speak with my friends, I speak about my accomplishments in the kitchen and they speak about the pending deployment plans. Crazy life, for ex: It flings two friends who were class mates, studying the same notes into extremely discordant paths. That was certainly the “Spring Season” of our lives.

AWAITING YOU….

It has been quite a wait, then dawned a beautiful morning. I was excitingly heading towards the airport. I never stopped showing my excitement to my dear one who was driving and showing his excitement too. Parents are arriving from INDIA… WOW!! No sooner did I see them waiting with their luggage, my heart was bouncing with joy. I ran towards them and hugged them tightly; there peeped a tear of happiness and relief. A sigh of relief came up as I have got a full time company, a soul to care for me, help me in cooking, and kill time in a better way. And towards our way back home, they were explaining about their travel experiences. I was in turn recapping my experiences to them.

It was a beautiful summer, with the breakup of daytime silence. Our home was filled with care, love, affection even more as there were two more to contribute. We happily went around showing them the places around, having a beautiful and a peaceful walk. They enjoyed the sight of new country filled with a lush of green everywhere. Of course they dint feel the heat as it is comparatively low from the homeland. We enjoyed our weekends, visiting a few lakes around, showing them the Indian temple here. I enjoyed the whole day with them expelling loneliness out of my way which was better than pushing the loneliness out of the house by myself all through the day till the evening. Getting new tips in cooking, learning basic stuffs which I was unaware these days was an exciting learning experience which I had missed immediately after my marriage. Chitchatting the day with various topics that ran across our minds, and I was never idle and I liked it. It was indeed a beautiful summer.

But when are they coming here? Expecting them soon!! Expecting and waiting to experience all those I had quoted above which are only a few of all my wishes. We are waiting for you!! This is dedicated to both of our parents. We really miss you and our country..

The Saline Elixir.

 It was a gloomy day, began with a mild friction. Rome was not built in a day. Similarly is our character and perspective. Though we change our perspective, the previous behavior doesn’t seem to leave its roots. Idle mind is a devil’s workshop proves right many a times. Even though we try to stay with the present, we are reminded of our faults and unachieved destinations. Our friends will not want to hurt us, but pacifying the mind about an inexistent situation, pours the evil of pessimism and brings that alive. I hope every one of us would have experienced the same ripples of feeling low in our minds. What can be the remedy? Where can I find it?

A skimp of comparison at these situations will pour oil into the flame. Whom can we lean on? Our loved ones? Our soul mate? But if they are not beside you at that instant? Our heart will cry...” Oh why is there anybody with me? Will anybody be with me if I am upset? Or will I be in solitude?” It found shelter under the eyelids and besought the tears. It might be looked upon us as a faint-heart. But she is the one who lends us her shoulder to soak up our fear, low-esteem and pessimism. I (heart) never told her my pain, my pricking confusion, but I spoke with her through her (tears). She listened to me in silence. After a jiffy, i felt at ease, the clouds had cleared off its place. I realized what should be done to make the best out of the situation instead of grieving over the inexistence. This is when the mind which was in sleep under the shadow of clouds, took over the power.

The healing mother “Nature” gives the best booster dose. Even when she is silent, heals our pain and brings back the charm in us. What if we look at a rainbow extending her arms wide enough to embrace us with brightness filled in her? She unveils her beauty which gets us dumbstruck to such an extent that we forget the wound. Whenever you feel like crying do not stop, if not in public, do it at the restroom, shed her out and she is sure to bring in the ease.

ARE WE THERE YET???

A discipline might be a sour pill for a school going kid, but how about the so-called adults? There are certain situations where it can’t be overlooked. The most important discipline is the one on road. This not only includes the travellers through vehicles, it also constitutes the pedestrians. I had cited my experience on this topic in one my previous post, “Taking on Death”. We would have heard people of different states in India boasting about the worsening of road discipline at their home towns. These are not going to serve any better for the condition. This is an attempt to compare the situations with the so-called super-power, United Sates.


The proper steps taken towards discipline are, neatly laid roads based on the population, importance of the locality i.e. highway or freeway, dividing the roads as lanes, maintenance of roads, separate pathway for pedestrians and cyclists. Strict and mandatory rules for travel, like the use seat belts, children seats, and lane discipline are being imposed. Here speed signs are posted along the road at certain distance, driving higher than the posted speed limit is a felony. We do not even have speed signs posted in our roads. The speed on the highway is much higher in comparison with our country; this is made possible with neatly laid roads and lane discipline. Though the speed of travel is greater, proper adherence to the rules will help us reach our destination on time without any hassle. The speed limits are a minimum of 65 MPH, and it has to be followed on the highway. Travelling at a lower speed is illegal. Cops are assigned at various places and check the speed of vehicles with speed guns using laser to detect the speed. If we over speed, the cop will charge us immediately, and trying to flee the cops is a felony and the punishment might go till imprisonment. Along the roads, sign boards have been posted to warn, inform or to regulate the traffic. Highest priority is given in the order of pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists. Sharing the road with others is insisted and mutual respect for the co-travellers is given. These remind me of the incidents in India, people in a car would look down at the pedestrians and motorists. The elderly are given great respect while crossing the road here, the vehicles should stop well before the crossway and wait till they pass completely and they must not be disturbed by horns, while in India; they would be mocked at by the motorists and swing away close by them. A rule is laid said that it is against law to pass by an accident scene without offering help and this might lead to the revocation of license. Another amazing aspect is the importance for the physically challenged. Separate parking slots will be assigned to them near the entrance of the shop or mall, and others who try to misuse this would be heavily fined. Most of the parking lots, signals, crossways will be monitored with surveillance cameras and so nobody can escape the eyes of the Law. The cops cannot be bribed here, whereas in India, cop will forgive you if you bribe him for your mistake. I experienced this recently, I was in the bike with my hubby and we reached the main road before realizing it was a one-way. The traffic police stopped us and asked for explanation, we explained the case as a matter of urgency. When we asked for forgiving, he asked us what can be done, and asked us fine of 50 bucks. We gave him; he pretended to the public as if he was fining us legally, but slid the money into his pocket and left us. When is this going to close? Even the petty one of maintaining a standard distance between two vehicles is being followed. These laws here does not ensure washout of accident cases, but it will remarkably reduce the risk of an accident. There are certain exception here too who don’t care to follow “strict rules” but they are sure to be fined. In our country, laws have been laid by the government such as,

* Wearing a helmet in 2003-04

* Wearing a seat belt in 2005-06

* Plying of heavy vehicles within city limits during the day was banned in 2005.

* Lane discipline was enforced in 2007.

But only a few follow the rules. This is one of the few disciplines in life to be learnt from them.